A Knight in Shining Armor
by JanetBanana
Summary: Casey is being hurt. Derek tries to protect her. Will he succeed? DASEY! I do not own Life With Derek or any characters you recognize from the show.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N** this is my first LWD fic. Please leave me reviews, they encourage me to update faster. This will be Derek's POV for most of the story. Oh, and I've already written the first five chapters. I'll post the first five daily, but I'm not changing what I've already wrote. Warning: This story does not make Sam look good. Also, possibly rated M._

**A Knight in Shining Armor**

_Rescuing Casey_

I saw the bruise on her cheek immediately. Nora asked her what happened. "Oh you know me, klutzilla". And she ran up to her room. Everyone in the room but Marti exchanged concerned looks. I'd seen only four bruises in the last few weeks, but the result of more. Discreetly I got up and prepared her an ice pack, and took it up to her.

"You know," I said, standing there in her doorway as I always did, trying to look cool "I'm really worried about you, Case. I don't believe that "klutzilla" bit at all. Something's going on and I want to know what." "Oh, please, Derek, you're the one who gave me that nickname." "Yeah, and I've lived with you long enough to know your not nearly as klutzy as the name makes you sound." I walked toward where she was sitting on the bed and gently placed the ice pack on her cheek. "Something's going on here. You have way too many bruises. I want you to tell me what's going on." Casey sighed, "Oh, and since when do you care? Why aren't you laughing it up and making fun of it every chance you get?" I got up and moved toward the door. "Don't push me away Case. I don't know what's going on here, but I think you need me, you need all of us more than you let on, and I don't want to see any more bruises, you hear?"

I walked out of the room chuckling under my breath that the last part of my little speech sounded a bit more like something I'd tell Marti than a sixteen year old that should be able to take care of herself. I wished she would tell me what was going on. I still picked the mandatory step brother/sister fights with her, but I'd realized I just did it now to hide my feelings from her. And the rest of the family of course. No doubt Edwin would never let the teasing stop if he found out the truth. That I was in love with Casey. Lizzie, little miss discreet, wouldn't say anything, of course, and Marti would ramble on about people crushing on each other. But I'd really get it from Ed. And how would Dad and Nora react? Sure, they'd try to be sensitive, wouldn't they? But considering our past? Who really knows? Not to mention she was with Sam. She certainly didn't return the feelings.

But that wasn't important now. Casey was getting hurt, and that klutzilla nickname didn't fit the graceful girl/woman at all. No, she wasn't klutzilla. Now she was no more than my "Casserole Casey". I _knew_ it was cheesy. I'd only ever called her that the one time at dinner, obviously, and she'd retorted with that "Dereka" remark, but I thought of her that way. It was one of those moments. The cheesy ones are the ones I'd remember more than anything, early on, mostly because there were not many other mutually pleasant moments between us.

I had to find out what was going on. I reentered Casey's bedroom. "Please, Case, just tell me what's going on? We're all worried about you." Casey yelled at me "Look Derek, I can't tell you. If I did you'd disown me. Or give me another bruise for saying it, most likely." "What can you possibly mean by that, Case? Look, you have to be honest. I have to know what's going on. Please trust me." Casey looked at me warily, as if she were weighing her following words carefully. When she'd been silent for a while I looked at her and said "If you don't tell me I'll drag you downstairs and show Dad and Nora the bruise on your stomach if I have to rip your shirt off to show them." The irony of that last part hit me, remembering all those times she was seething in anger and I'd wanted to do just that, but it obviously missed Casey by a mile. "How did you know about that?" "I saw you clutching it the other day. If you try to hide something, you should close your door more often." Casey stood up, balling her fists, taking deep breaths, looking as though she were either going to slug me, or gather courage, and whispered, her voice breaking "It's Sam. He hit me a couple of times. I've been trying to hide it but I don't know if I can anymore." I was pissed at her now, pissed for real, for the first time in at least two months. "You don't talk about my best friend that way. I don't know why you're hurt, but you aren't blaming it on my best friend!" I yelled and went into my room, seething.

Can you believe her? Blaming it on Sam. Sam would never hit his girlfriend. Or any woman. But then I remembered some article I'd read on women who got beat by their boyfriend when Nora and Casey were pushing feminism in the house, and how part of it matched up. It had to have started a month ago. Her bruises always showed up after a date with Sam. And he'd bring her flowers or chocolates or stuffed animals the next day. That wasn't sounding very coincidental. The article said they'd do that. Then I remembered something else. I remembered being at Sam's house when we were only eight or nine, and seeing his mom with a very obvious shiner. "What happened was it take your mom to the hockey rink day?" I'd asked Sam. Sam had just said "yeah, something like that" and left it alone. One time, a few weeks later, I'd seen Sam's dad hitting her, but I didn't really pay much attention. I mean, it had only been that one time. Well unless you counted the shiner, but I couldn't be sure that's where it came from. The article had also said that "abusive behaviors are usually passed on from the father".

Could what Casey was saying be true? The slow truth dawned on me with sadness. I'd tried to keep Sam and Casey apart lately for selfish reasons, but I'd had no idea Sam was dangerous! But I couldn't really believe that. Coincidences happened all the time. Sam was my best friend. He didn't do that sort of thing. He was a great guy. Casey was just dreaming. But then that didn't explain the bruises, did it? How the hell would she have gotten them? And why would she blame it on Sam? She said she loved him. Didn't she? You can't love someone who beats you. You just can't. It doesn't make sense! Casey was the most sensible person I knew. If she was in an abusive relationship, she'd tell someone, get help. She wouldn't just let it continue. Right? What if that was it? Her telling me was her way of asking for help. And she had to be serious. You don't say something horrible about someone to their best friend unless it was true. I didn't know what to do. I had to protect her, but first I had to know what to protect her from. It couldn't be Sam. It just couldn't. Except all signs pointed toward him.


	2. Chapter 2

**_A/N: _**Just a reminder that this is going to be angsty, if you are a big Sam fan, you may not want to read!

_iluvhsm-Sprntrl-LWD-Sville13:_ I love how you want to jump into the story. I kind of wanted to also, but this is about Derek, not me, sooo….lol.

**A Knight in Shining Armor**

_Derek and George: Mano a Mano_

I descended the stairs looking for my Dad. I needed help. I couldn't help Casey all by myself. I found Dad sitting in the den reading. "Dad?" He looked up "Yeah son?" "I need to talk to you. Can we go somewhere?" "Sure, I'll just tell Nora we decided to take a drive." A few minutes later we left and were driving along the road that led to the nearby lake, which is where we always went when we needed to have a man to man talk.

"Okay, I think before I ask for your help I need to get something out of the way. This is kind of hard to say, but, I'm falling for Casey, Dad. That's really not what I wanted to talk about, but it's sort of relevant, and I thought you might want to know." Dad slowed to a crawl. "Falling for Casey? As in falling in love? With your stepsister? The one you haven't gotten along with? Ever?" "Yeah, Dad. That's the one. I mean, I know she's my stepsister and we don't always get along, and I've been through the whole "practically related" bit in my head a thousand times, but that's all we are. _Practically_ related. Not by blood, but by marriage. I can't ignore my feelings anymore. I have to be honest with myself. You aren't upset are you?" He mulled it over for a while. "Well, son. I guess it shouldn't surprise me that much. I mean, she is only your _step_sister, she shares a bathroom with you, and your fights I suppose could be misplaced sexual tension. No, I'm not upset. It's going to take me some getting used to, but I'm going to be open minded. That's what a good father does."

I sighed an audible sigh of relief. "Well that helps. But that's not really why I wanted to talk. I'm really worried about Casey. She keeps coming home with bruises. I know I'm not the only one who noticed it, either. I know you and Nora have, and Ed asked me the other day if Casey had been forced to join a contact sport. Not to mention the other day. Casey's door was ajar, and she must not have noticed, but she'd pulled up her shirt and was rubbing her stomach like she was in pain and Dad, there was a bruise bigger than my fist. A bad one, too, coming from hockey experience."

He pulled into the parking lot by the lake. "I know. Nora and I have discussed it. We tried to push it away as coincidental, but three "klutz moments" in one month? Four I guess, with the one you just told me about. It just doesn't seem likely. Especially not ones that bruise that badly! But we really don't know where they're coming from. It's not that we don't want to act, but, well, we really don't know where to look for clues."

I sighed. I knew it was now or never. I'd spill my theory about Sam or I wouldn't, but I wasn't going to wait around. If what she said was true, I couldn't have her get hurt even one more time just because I didn't want to turn in my best friend. And I suppose every guy that does something like this has a best friend too. "Dad, I brought her an ice pack tonight when she came home with her latest bruise, and I got her to tell me what happened. I didn't want to believe it, but I think I have to. Sam has been hitting her." Dad laughed in disbelief. "Sam? He's such a good guy. He wouldn't do that. Wait a minute, did you just rat your best friend out? Are you telling me you really believe this?" "Yeah Dad, I mean, I read this article about abusive boyfriends one time, and I looked it up on the internet just before I came to you to refresh my memory. He fits the description. Have you noticed every time she gets a bruise it's when she's out with Sam? And that he brings her presents? I guess I thought he was doing the boyfriend thing and trying to make her feel better about the bruise by giving her stuff, but it wasn't until Casey confessed that I knew he'd been giving her the bruises too! Remember last week when she allegedly 'fell into the Davis' pool?' She was sore and kept rubbing her side. Emily told me she hadn't even been swimming there that day! And why would she? Her bathing suit certainly wouldn't hide the bruises! But what's more is the next day Sam gave her a locket. Certainly not a cheap piece of jewelry. Do you notice that even though it's summer she's been wearing long sleeves and pants _every day? _What if she's hiding more bruises?" I also told him about my childhood memories with Sam's parents.

Just as Dad was taking this all in, trying to form a reply, his cell phone rang. It was Nora. "George, I don't know where you and Derek went but you have to come home right away." "Is everything alright?" "I opened the door to Casey's room and she was standing in front of her mirror in her underwear sobbing, and there were bruises everywhere not just the three or four we had imagined. I think we need to take her to the hospital." He threw the truck into gear and sped home filling me in on the details.


	3. Chapter 3

_Sammayx23: _Sorry about the form, I do know how to do it right, it just bugs me how it ends up on the site. I'll fix it though, because the way I had it kind of bugged me too.

_iluvhsm-Sprntrl-LWD-Sville13:_ No, he didn't rape her, he beat her. Just letting you know.

Okay, on with the story.

**A Knight in Shining Armor**

_Casey and Derek Talk_

I sat in the recliner beside Casey's hospital bed knowing I should try to sleep. They'd decided to monitor her for a couple of days to make sure none of the bruises hemorrhaged. She'd been sedated, and I watched her sleep, knowing that at least right now she was safe. I could tell she didn't know it though. Her dream riddled sleep left her tossing and turning, groaning in pain, and she kept mumbling about how she couldn't take much more of this. Once she clearly pleaded with me, as if reliving the confession up in her room the way she wished she'd done it "Derek help me. I only told you because you can help me."

I sighed, wishing I knew how. I could be there for her, as I was now, I could comfort her, but help her? Help her stop Sam? How do you do that? How do you stop an abusive boyfriend? What's more, how much harder would that be, when he is my best friend? Is? Or was? Could I really continue a friendship, even one thicker than blood when my friend was hurting the woman I love?

At that moment, Casey woke up looking confused. "Derek? What am I doing here in the hospital? And why are _you_ here with me?"

"Case, Dad and Nora and I brought you here. You were looking in the mirror sobbing and Nora heard you say "Why, Sam, why?" She opened the door and found you looking this way and we decided it was best you go to the hospital. I want to help you. I don't want you to get a single new bruise. I'm going to be right here at your side until they release you from the hospital. Dad is going to legally advise you on what the next step is, but you are going to have to cut off all contact with Sam."

Casey just stared at me as if I'd grown another head. She'd seemed to comprehend the part about why she was there, although her eyebrows visibly furrowed together in confusion when I'd said "we" decided it was best. She'd seemed to understand the part about the legal advice as well. But when I kept saying I wanted to help her and stay with her, she seemed utterly confused. She pretended she hadn't heard that part. "So where is everyone else? Did they ask you to stay with me while they got supper or something? I guess you were the only one old enough to stay here without them. When can I see my mom?"

I sighed. "Casey, listen to me. I am here because I care about you. Someone has to be with you because Sam could find out you're here and try to hurt you more. And I want to be the one here." There was that look again. The 'Derek has two heads' look. I was glad I hadn't added what I really wanted to say, which was "I love you" but I figured with the looks she was giving me, there was only so much she'd take in right now. "It's the middle of the night. Dad and Nora and everyone have gone home and are sleeping. If you really want me to get her up here for you now, though, she said just call and she'd be here immediately. Otherwise she'll be here in the morning when visiting hours begin."

"I think you should let her sleep. Can you tell me why, if I'm here at the hospital, they can't give me pain medication? I feel like I've been hit by a runaway train."

This made me want to cry. She was in pain and I couldn't do a damn thing to relieve it. "Casey, they can't give you medication. Your bruises could rupture and start hemorrhaging. If that happens they have to know immediately, or you could be way worse off than you are right now." I'd decided against telling her that if she hemorrhaged and it wasn't treated immediately she'd die. It was killing me just knowing it was possible. I thought I'd sugarcoat it for her a little. "If they give you pain relief you might not feel a rupture and you'd be" Damn! I'd almost said dead. "You'd be in very serious trouble. So for now the only meds you get are sedatives. Only once your doctor decides your bruises don't have a chance of rupturing, only then can you have pain medication. Do you understand?" Casey nodded, tears of pain that I could only guess were both physical _and_ emotional, streaming down her cheeks.

"Have you slept?" she asked me. "Not yet. I haven't managed to fall asleep because I've been worrying about you."

"Well I think you need some sleep. Since I can't really do anything right now, do you mind trying to sleep with the TV on? It's the only thing to occupy me and get my mind off stuff right now and I'd appreciate the distraction it'll provide."

"Anything for you. Just remember, Sam is dangerous. If he comes in the room don't hesitate for a second to wake me. Just yell at me, trust me I'll wake up."

"Okay Derek." She said it like it meant so much more than just okay. She said it like she was wary of all this caring I'd just dumped on her, but also like I was her lifeline, and even though I was acting strange, I was all she had right now. As I curled up on the couch preparing to go to sleep, I made a promise to myself that I'd do everything in my power to get her healthy again, that her cheeks would be rosy from happiness, not bruises, and that I'd keep her safe from Sam and anything else for as long as I lived. Just before I drifted off into dreamland, I whispered, so low I knew she had no chance of hearing it, "I love you Casey MacDonald. Forever and always. I love you."


	4. Chapter 4

_sammayx23:_ I'm using Word. I think it's the site, though, something about the way it accepts entries, that bugs me.

_Hillary: _That will happen, but probably not until chapter 8 or 9.

**A/N:** The line break signifies where it goes to Lizzie's POV, the next line its back to Derek.

**Edit:** Sorry that confused some people, my line break didn't work. Okay I am submitting this in place of it_. Italics_ now signify Lizzie's POV

**A Knight in Shining Armor**

_The Hospital Visit_

"Hey bro, wake up!" Through my nightmare ridden dreams I felt Edwin shake me. All night I'd dreamed I was tied to this wall and I couldn't protect her. Maybe emotionally I felt that way. I rubbed my cheeks, only somewhat surprised to find dried tears on them. I opened my eyes and Marti started to climb into my lap. "Smerek?"

I smiled. My little sister always seemed to make me happier, or at least a little less blue. "Will you have a tea party with me this afternoon, please?" she begged me.

"I can't Smarti. I'm going to stay here until they say Casey can go home. How about when we get back?"

"Okay Smerek." I glanced over making sure Casey's covers were up to her chin. I didn't want Marti to worry; it would just make things worse.

Edwin stood at the foot of Casey's bed and said "From me and Lizzie. Surprise!"

And Lizzie and Dad walked in with a big banner that said "Get well soon, Casey", it was obviously homemade. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders when she cracked that famous Casey smile and started to cry. They were girl tears; tears of happiness. I was glad she was still able to find happiness in the midst of her situation. "Aw thanks guys."

Marti left my lap and started to climb into bed with Casey. Dad and I both lunged for her "Marti, no!" I got to her first and said "Casey's very fragile right now. You can't climb on top of her!"

"Okay Derek."

But Casey was surprised "Me, fragile? C'mon Derek I'm not in that bad of condition."

"Yeah Case you are. I explained it to you last night."

"Are you saying I'm in such bad shape my little sister can't hug me?" "Yeah Case, that's what I'm saying."

Now she looked scared, the color draining from her face. I realized the gravity of the situation must've hit her. Maybe I shouldn't have spared her last night in my explanation. But I couldn't tell her just how serious it could become. I didn't want to face it myself.

_I looked at Derek. I'd always been very astute at reading people. Adults were always telling me I was an 'old soul' and 'very wise'. It could be a good thing, too. Once when I was four, I'd grabbed my Mom's hand at the mall and pointed at someone and said "Bad man!" Turned out the kid he was with was one he'd kidnapped. _

_From then on, people in my family at least, had seemed to take my judgment of character as law. It had proved to be a bad thing, as well. When my real dad left my mom, I had known things were bad before they ever started fighting. I was happy, too, when I met George, and knew right away he'd never make Mom sad. _

_And what I learned when I met Derek? I couldn't tell you if it was good or bad or somewhere in between. I knew from the moment he and Casey met that one day he'd be head over heels in love with her. I knew now that that moment had come. _

_What I didn't know, the one person I could never suss out, was my sister, the girl I had a closer bond with than anyone else in my life. I think I was biased. I was too close to her to judge her fairly. Did she love Derek back? Did she not? If she did, would it be a good thing? And if she didn't? _

_I was somewhat ashamed of myself. Being able to get George, Derek, Dad, the man at the mall, all right away. But not Casey. I hadn't figured Edwin out, either, but that's because it took us no time at all, between Casey and Derek's screaming matches, to become best friends. You don't try to figure out your best friend, there's no need. You know you trust him. _

_I trusted Casey of course. I could judge a lot of her character. It's just that in that instant when their first fight ended, I saw love in Derek, whether he'd have admitted it then or not. In Casey I saw fury, but something else. And for some reason, I have never figured out if that something else was love, lust, anger, passion, or a combination. And now, with it looking like Derek's secret was going to be out, I was even more curious to know._

The doctor entered "Everybody out, I need to look over Casey and see how she's doing." I took Marti down to the cafeteria. I needed to eat; it'd been a day and a half since I'd had a meal. Nora had brought me take out last night when they decided I'd stay with Casey, but I hadn't touched it and eventually threw it away. The idea of eating repulsed me. Food gave me life, health. Casey didn't have health and if anything, so much as one tiny thing, went wrong she might not have life, so why should I eat? She deserved so much more than I did and so much more than I could give her. But now I decided I should eat, and would eat. I had to be strong for her.

I hadn't realized I was crying, until Marti wiped my face and said "What's wrong?" I didn't really know what to tell her, so I ignored the question and began going through the line taking a meat and two vegetables. It looked like something Nora would make sure I ate instead of the junk food Dad used to fix. Before Nora. Before I fell in love with Casey and Sam started hitting her and my entire world started crashing down around me. I didn't really care if it tasted good; I wasn't eating for pleasure, but strength. I made sure Marti had something resembling a meal, paid the cashier and sat down.

Marti, sensing in her small child intuition way, that I didn't want to talk, regaled me with tales of princes and princesses and royal cats. I only half paid attention to her, something I rarely did. I was busy worrying about when Casey actually did make it out of the hospital. As token best friend and boyfriend around the Venturi-MacDonald house, Sam had a key. So even if all the doors and windows were locked, he could still get in and hurt Casey. Unless I could get that key.

Marti had finished her meal, and I had forced myself to finish mine. We went up to Casey's room, where the doctor was still with her. Marti dragged me down to the maternity ward to look at the new babies. The sight of those small innocent newborns mad me sad. What kind of sorrow was in store for these children? I couldn't be there with those thoughts anymore. "Come on Marti, let's go. I need to see Casey's doctor."

"Okay, Smerek."

We got back just as the doctor was leaving her room. "Doctor, how is she?"

"Well I've inspected each of her bruises closely, and she's in the clear. She may receive pain relief now, and we will probably release her from the hospital tomorrow."

I had mixed feelings about that. I was thrilled she was out of the woods, but out of the hospital was another matter entirely. Here, she was safe. Here, I could protect her. But at home, where she slept alone in a room, Sam could sneak in. He could get to her. I promised myself I'd sleep outside her door and make sure her window was locked every night.

It was weird how quickly I'd fallen, and shocking how hard. Nothing in my life mattered anymore except keeping Casey safe. Nothing.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Hey guys sorry it took so long to update. I'm throwing you for a curveball here, so just be patient. Sam will get his, it'll just be awhile. Kay?

The doctor sent Casey home with pain medication, instructions to take it easy, but that she could resume light normal activity. I talked it over with Dad and Nora and they allowed me to take her for pizza, which fell under 'light normal activity'. I wanted to get her mind off of everything, and I knew the weird unspoken understanding we'd come to would eventually be broken on her part. She'd become increasingly uncomfortable with the level of courtesy and love I'd showered on her since that evening. I knew in her mind she was positive I was only being so nice because she was in the situation she was in. In her mind, no way did I want to change our relationship, and once this was all over with we'd go back to hating each other. Sure, it wasn't true, but I was positive she didn't know that. I wanted to tell her how I felt, but I couldn't. She certainly wouldn't be receptive. Not right now. But maybe I could warm her up to the idea.

_I didn't know what was up with Derek, but I was certainly enjoying the treatment. I didn't need his fights right now. The way he was treating me, though. It wasn't brotherly, or step-brotherly, or even friendly. It was—it was like a boyfriend treats you. Well, a good boyfriend, like the ones you see in movies, like Sam was before he snapped. But it definitely wasn't like Derek. Not with me. Now that I thought about it though, our fights lately, and by lately I'd guess in at least three months, had seemed hollow. Like, he at least, was only going through the motions. And now that I was out of the hospital, he was taking me out. It was just so unfair. I'd sort of liked him since the beginning. I had acted out initially in response from being taken away from everything I'd known and thrust into a completely new habitat. Once I'd gotten to know him, I was positive the only bad thing about him was his ego. That whole "What Derek wants, Derek gets" thing was more than a little frustrating. The only reason I continued my little power battles with him was out of frustration too, knowing I couldn't have him, even though I was pretty positive I only wanted him just a little anyway. And now he had to go and give me a taste of everything I'd ever wanted from him. Once this whole thing blew over, he'd go back to hating me, leaving me with these memories, which had to coincide with the memories of probably the worst thing that had ever happened to me in my life. Because he was only doing this to get my mind off the bad stuff. Right?_

I had my arm around Casey, helping her out of the hospital. It was no easy task. If I wasn't strong she'd fall, but if I was, I'd hurt her. I decided to pick her up and carry her, threshold style. She just lay there in my arms, limply, with a small smile on her face. I didn't know why she was smiling, but it was only the third smile I'd seen on her face in two weeks. It gave me hope. Dad and Nora and the kids all piled into the van, while I gently placed Casey in the passenger seat of my sports car. Once I'd gotten in and started the car I asked her "So, pizza?" Then the smile vanished, and was replaced by tears. "What did I say?" "Pizza was the last thing Sam and I had together before he snapped." She spat. "Oh, I'm sorry! What do you want to do then? I'm yours until 4:00. Then I owe Marti a tea party." That seemed to cheer her up, the little reminder of how heartwarmingly I behaved with my baby sister. "Take me to the movies?" "Uh, can't you think of somewhere less dark?" I didn't want Sam attacking her in the theater. I wanted to go somewhere I could see it coming so I could stop it. I was becoming incredibly paranoid. This wasn't like me. It made me nervous to be so uncharacteristic of myself. "How about we go get burgers and coffee?" That seemed like an okay choice with her, so I drove downtown.

There we were in the middle of our meal, making idle chitchat, having more fun together than ever before for the two of us, when I saw Sam walk into the restaurant. Casey saw me visibly tense up. I pushed my food over and slid into the same side of the booth as Casey, pushing her toward the wall. "Derek what are you doing?" "Making sure I keep you safe." I'd put my arm around her, almost as if making some sort of territorial claim on her. She looked up and saw Sam standing at the counter deciding what to order. "What, you think he'd hurt me in public?" "How the hell do I know? I was never there when he hurt you, but I'm going to make damn sure he never will again." We finished our meal, decidedly less comfortably, and left the restaurant, me never letting her go the entire time.  
Now back in the car I said something I thought was probably crossing the line, but I had to know. "Tell me about it Case. I know it's going to be hard for you, but I want to know just how dangerous he is. I'm going to call Dad and you can tell him too, so you don't have to go through this twice." She began filling us in, and when she finished she was emotionally spent. So was I, just from hearing it. When we got home Dad was waiting for us and we sat at the table. "The first thing you have to do is officially tell him you're over. On the phone, I don't want you going near him. The second thing you should do, since its summer, is get out of town. It will only be for about a month, while I go over the proper legal proceedings, but he could hurt you before then, and I don't think anyone wants that. Do you know of somewhere you would like to go?" Before she could answer I piped up "We could use Uncle John's cabin in Minnesota. I'll stay with her." I wasn't letting her out of my sight until I knew Sam couldn't hurt her, but Dad took it the wrong way. He hadn't forgotten my confession in his truck, so he said "Only if you bring Lizzie and Edwin. And we'll talk more about this later this evening. I'll call John and ask him." "Can Emily come too?" Casey asked him. Dad agreed. Three hours later, Casey, Lizzie, Edwin, Emily and I were boarding a plane to Minnesota.

My protective feelings for Casey had become so instinctive that I gently pushed her into the window seat, not allowing her the aisle she preferred, so that I would be between her and Sam, as if he were going to materialize on the plane too. "Gosh, Derek, Sam is going to be hours away from us. Relax!" Emily commanded. While I worried Sam might find where we went and follow, I still took her advice, and for the first time in almost a week, I fell into a deep healthy sleep, because at least until the plane landed, she'd be over 35,000 feet above Sam's head and away from his harm. It was, without a doubt, the happiest three and a half hours of my life, knowing that, at least for now, she was completely safe.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Sorry about the delay. I've been busy; but I promise a new chapter every day or two.

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_Life at the Lake_

Life at the lake was always great. Sure, it had its downsides. You couldn't order pizza, because the nearest pizza place was thirty miles away, and it didn't deliver, so even if you didn't feel like cooking, you had to. Overall, though, life just seemed to go slower out here where the only people around were on vacation, just like you.

I helped everyone out of the cab and paid the driver. Uncle John was a doctor, and his 'cabin' was more like a three bedroom house, and I wasn't complaining. Especially with the luxury of two bathrooms we weren't even afforded at home. Being Derek, everyone seemed to gravitate away from the master when choosing their rooms, expecting me to demand it, so I took matters into my own hands. "Emily, Casey, you two will share the master bedroom, Edwin, you and I will share the big extra bedroom, and Lizzie, you can have the small one to yourself." I didn't want Casey in a room alone, but after the talk…okay lecture Dad gave me I was pretty sure even if I'd convinced her to let me share he'd find out, and Dad's wrath was not a pretty thing.

We had full use of Uncle John's lakeside privileges. His speedboat _and_ his party barge, not to mention, free canoe and kayak use. Marina membership was a pretty good thing. The only thing we had to pay for was food, gas for the boats, and cab rides to town. After everyone was settled into their rooms and we'd taken our first boat ride of the summer, which is what we always did the first day we came here, I called a cab. We needed groceries, or we'd starve. The only thing left in the fridge was sour milk, and the doctor had ordered Casey to eat three meals a day to help continued healing. So if we wanted breakfast in the morning, we needed groceries tonight. I knew she wouldn't want to go grocery shopping with just me, but when I mentioned food, everyone seemed to have their own agenda, and when the cab arrived, all five of us piled in.

We asked the cab driver to take us to the nearest place we'd find food, and in twenty minutes we'd arrived at a Wal-Mart. We got a couple of carts and everyone went in different directions. Only ten minutes later Edwin had filled half the first cart with frozen pizzas, potato chips, and candy, and Emily and Casey filled their cart with vegetables, fruits, and lean meat. Lizzie, who liked to bake, and who'd improved a lot since her cookie mishap, put eggs, flour, sugar, and other baking necessities into the one I was aimlessly pushing. None of them were really thinking about lakeside life, it seemed, so I grabbed enough for a weeks worth of burgers and dogs. When everyone seemed happy with their choices, we realized we had two months worth of food and put some back, especially a lot of Edwin's candy.

Just as Emily and I were pushing the carts toward the checkout counter, Edwin yelled "wait!" and in a few minutes brought back the most important part of a vacation like this, graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars.

"Ooh, good thinking, Edwin, how'd we forget s'mores?" I asked, and then we paid for our food, and went back to the lake house.

When we got there and lights were on I started to get a little freaked out, but as we were getting grocery bags out of the cab, Nora opened the door to come help us. I'd forgotten she'd be staying with us for the first four days, to make sure us five kids could handle living at the lake alone. She'd probably only just gotten in from her late flight. She'd wanted to come with us, but had some work thing she couldn't get out of.

I hadn't forgotten my plan to sleep outside Casey's room, although here Sam had no key. I just worried. I hadn't been a worrier before, but after the last few days it just kind of wormed my way into my brain and wouldn't stop. When Nora saw me heading towards Casey's room with my sleeping bag she posed her question "You care about her don't you? Not like those other girls who end up on our couch for a few hours, never to be heard from again, but like…" she trailed off unable to think of a comparison.

"Like Dad cares about you." I finished for her. I knew she was shocked by this; my answer and my honesty. I'd been acting a lot different lately. I actually included Dad and even her in my life now. It'd be kind of hard not to though, I guess, if Casey surprised us all and returned my affections.

"Well I can't say I'm too surprised" she told me.

"You aren't?" I said, clearly shocked by this.

"Well our resident super character judge Lizzie told me when she figured it out."

"When was that?"

"Right after you first fight."

My jaw dropped. That had been over a year ago. I hadn't known then. Although now that I thought about it, I probably had. I just wasn't really willing to admit it to myself. As I headed over to spread out my sleeping bag, I couldn't get rid of a gnawing worry in the pit of my stomach, but I didn't know why. Then it hit me. Sam had come here with us Venturi's a few summers ago. He knew where it was. Hopefully he wouldn't figure out we were here.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Okay guys, so this chapter I wanted to let y'all know how the rest of the family was reacting, so here are Edwin, Lizzie, Emily, Casey, and Nora's POV of whats going on right now. Don't worry, normal format will be back next chapter, not to mention some honest to goodness Derek and Casey interaction, and in chapter nine those of you who've been asking about Sam will get some Sam. I won't say more than that right now. Hope you like!

_iluvhsm-Sprntrl-LWD-Sville13:_ Thanks for all your reviews, they always make me laugh. If I were a betting woman...lol. Just wanted to thank you!

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_How the rest of the world sees it_

**Edwin's POV**

The first several days at the lake were pretty much a blast. We swam, went boating, and generally lounged around. I say pretty much because Derek followed Casey everywhere. He didn't want her leaving his sight _at all_. It was almost like back to normal between the two, what with the fights starting back up. It was kind of funny, him insisting she take every boat ride he did, not letting her swim unless he was, standing outside the bathroom door while she took care of business. Funny except for her yelling at him every single time that she wanted time to herself, that she didn't want to go boating, that she wanted to swim, it was relaxing, and that it was very hard to pee knowing someone was on the other side waiting for her to finish. He'd gotten her with that last one, saying at our house there was always someone waiting for her to finish, she should be used to it by now, which was so true. It was pretty cool getting our room to myself at night, too, and today I was going to help him drag his mattress over to the alcove near the door to her room, because I liked having the room to myself. It was incredibly stressful on all of us though, him being so worried. I also wasn't sure how I felt about my brother being in love with my stepsister. It was just so weird! Not because they were stepsiblings, either. But because they were Derek and Casey!

_**Lizzie's POV**_

_When George told Edwin and me that we'd be going to a lake in Minnesota with Derek, Casey and Emily, I'd been kind of worried. The MacDonald's side of the family's idea of a vacation included room service and 1600 thread count bed linens. Not cooking, cleaning, and doing your own laundry. I was having fun, though. Swimming, boating, exploring the trails with Edwin. Sure, it wasn't the kind of vacation I'd expected to like, but I did anyway. If only Derek and Casey weren't at each other throats all the time. It was a vacation; couldn't they take a break from fighting, too?_

**Emily's POV**

In spite of our current situation, that being Derek's sudden need to follow Casey _everywhere_, and the fact that we were only here because Sam had beat her, Casey and I were enjoying ourselves. We spent a lot of time on the party barge, which is fun because you can just go out in the middle of the lake and hang. We'd been wanting to take a canoe ride together with a picnic, but Derek decided Casey wasn't safe in the middle of the lake without him, and the canoe was only supposed to be for two people. Not that having a girl's thing would go to well with a male third wheel, anyway. I supposed along with all the other irrational fears clouding his judgment right now, he thought not only would Sam follow us here, but rent a boat and follow us to the middle of the lake as well. I just hoped that that would all be over with soon.

_**Casey's POV**_

_Derek was not leaving me alone. At all! I started to suspect all of this treatment _wouldn't_ be over once my crisis was. It was so strange. Derek was sleeping outside my door every night, which made me a little uncomfortable. I mean, it's like he didn't trust me. You know how when you're baby sitting a small child and they keep getting into stuff, so you start following them around to make sure they don't make a mess? That's how I felt I was being treated. And apparently the rest of the family was completely okay with it. Sure, they told us to stop fighting, but they seemed to understand Derek's obsessive need to control my every move. Mom even went so far as to say "He can't control Sam's every move, and this is how he chooses to protect you. He really cares about you Casey, don't push him away." The thought disgusted me. If I really cared about someone, I'd let them have some personal space! I'd let them take a canoe ride with their best friend without me. I certainly wouldn't stand outside their bathroom waiting for them to finish. It was so insulting. Secretly, I think it makes me happy. I almost understand why he does it. The fact that someone wants to protect me that much makes me feel safe. But he was going to have to learn that if I didn't have any personal space inevitably we would all go nuts._

**Nora's POV**

George had sent me to the lake to make sure our kids would be able to get along without us for the month. I would be leaving today, after half a week there, and I think they're doing okay. Edwin and Lizzie were the ones I was the most worried about, going off on trails and getting lost, but they had figured out on the first day that leaving the beaten path could end up getting them hurt, so they made sure to stay on the trails after that. Emily and Casey just wanted to read and go boating, and they were both excellent swimmers, so I wasn't worried about them at all. It was Derek I was worried about most. He was worrying himself to death. I knew that if he got himself really stressed and his biggest fear came true and Sam showed up he'd have no strength left to protect my daughter. In the entire time that I'd been there with them I'd been trying to help him relax, and I'd done a little bit of good, but now that I was leaving, he was getting stressed again. I don't think Sam will show up though, and neither does George. Try telling that to Derek! He's absolutely certain that since Sam knows about this place, and since our kids and Emily disappeared from town, Sam will know they came here. At least I know Casey is in good hands. Derek is George's son, and he loves her, so I trust him.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **I think you guys will like this chapter. Once I post chapter 9 tomorrow we're going to get to the bottom of the wierd Derek-Casey stuff, so we'll find out more about Casey's side of things. And a reminder, yes, Sam action in chapter 9. Thanks for the reviews, hope chapter 7 wasn't too wierd. It wasn't my favorite to write, but I wanted to get in the other POV's because I felt it was important. Sometimes when I read a story I'll sit there going "So what does (insert character here) feel about all this?" There will probably be another chapter like that eventually. Anyway, hope you like it!

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_Heart-To-Heart's Are Good For The Soul_

We'd been at the lake for two and a half weeks. Finally, I had realized that I was driving everyone crazy, including myself. I still tried keeping an eye on Casey as much as possible, but I wasn't harping on her anymore, and I was letting her do things without me without putting up a fight. I think the straw that broke the camels back was when Edwin and Lizzie went kayaking and Lizzie fell out. I had to take the speedboat out to the kayak and help her out of the water, and I realized I'd better pay attention to my responsibilities to the other people on this trip as well.

Casey and Emily and sometimes Lizzie have been spending their days on the party barge, no doubt talking about clothes and boys and all those other boring conversations chicks have. Edwin and Lizzie spend a lot of time together too, and when Lizzie's with the girls Edwin and me get to have a lot of brother-brother time, which is nice. The lake house next to ours has some kids Edwin and Lizzie's age, and some kids our age, so yesterday we left the younger kids with them and all of us teenagers took the party barge and, well, partied.

Casey and Emily took the canoe out this morning, and Edwin, Lizzie and I were getting the house cleaned up, because we were all going into the nearby tourist-trap town tomorrow with our lake neighbors to break up the monotony, and Dad, Nora, and Marti were coming out the day after that for the weekend. We were also planning sort of a surprise party for Casey this evening as my apology for driving her crazy.

"Hey Ed, strip the beds and put all the sheets in the wash."

"Yeah, okay. Don't you think we need to find some firewood?"

"Yeah, quite a bit. Get enough for the fireplace and the outdoor fire pit too."

"Me? Derek, you are the hockey player. You want me lifting all that wood by myself?"

"I'm kidding, I'll go get it."

Emily had instructions to keep Casey out of the house until five o'clock. We'd asked the neighbor girls to invite them over for a movie after lunch. Lizzie and Edwin started cooking supper, which I was kind of worried about. Lizzie insisted on lasagna, Casey's favorite meal, but I had a feeling I'd have a very tomato-ey mess on my hands when they were finished baking it. I was right. It was 4:30, the lasagna would be out of the oven in half an hour, and the kitchen was a mess. It took the three of us the rest of the time to clean the kitchen and set the table. It was five when I answered the ringing phone. "Hello? Oh hey Emily. Fifteen minutes? Great." That gave me just enough time to start a fire in the fireplace and the kids to toss a salad.

_Derek met Emily and I at the back door of the lake house. I'd thought something was fishy; Emily hadn't let me near the place all day. Derek opened the door and everyone yelled, "surprise!" _

"_What is all this?"_

"_This is an apology. I've been making you crazy for the last couple of weeks, and I wanted to make up for it. I've lit a fire for you, and the kids made lasagna, and Emily, of course, kept you out of the house while we did it. Not to mention we cleaned up a lot. And, uh, I promise I'll keep out of your hair from now on. "_

"_Wow. Thanks! But now that you've loosened your grip I've started to actually enjoy spending time with you." And it was true. Derek wasn't half bad when we weren't fighting. We were getting along really well these last few days. We sat down to dinner, and when we were done we played a board game. Once it was dark, we all went out and had s'mores around the fire pit. We stayed out there for a long time. Lizzie and Edwin got tired and went to bed, and eventually Emily did too, leaving only Derek and me sitting at the fire._

_Derek said "You know you're actually a lot of fun when you aren't picking fights with me."_

"_Oh, this coming from the guy who didn't let me have personal space for over a week." _

"_I really am sorry you know. I just really care about you and I'm worried Sam will show up, and if I'm not around he could hurt you again."_

_I softened. "Derek, I understand your concern, but how would he know we came here?"_

"_Well he's been here before, three summers ago. That's why I worry. He knows how to get here and we did all just sort of disappear from town."_

"_Look, I'm glad we got this out of the way, but can we talk about something else? How about we talk about the fact that I feel like I have a boyfriend even though I'm single. I don't of course, but you sure act like it."_

"_You want the truth?"_

"_Yeah, that'd be nice for a change." I wondered where he was going with this. I wondered where I wanted him to go with this. _

"_The truth, Casey, is that I love you. Now I know you probably don't want to hear this, but you wanted honesty, and you got it."_

"_Really, Derek? Are you serious about this?"_

"_Very. Ask anyone in the family. I know you don't feel the same way. I wanted to tell you anyway."_

_Then I did something very unexpected. I kissed him. "You're right. I don't feel the same way. I can't right now, in the middle of all of this, even if I wanted to. But I _do_ like you." _

We went inside, and got ready for bed, and then sat in the living room in front of the now dying fire just talking, not about anything serious, but enjoying each other's company. We talked for hours, and fell asleep on the two couches across from each other. It was the nicest night of my life. Only to be followed by the roughest morning. We'd all had breakfast and our showers, and now we were sitting around lazily trying to decide what time we would leave for the tourist town. There was a knock at the door and Casey said it was probably the next door kids, so she went to answer it. Not ten seconds later I heard her terror stricken voice say quietly, "Sam?" Then, she called for me "Derek!"

Oh shit, I'd been right all along. He _was_ here.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** So here you are, the much hyped up chapter 9. Look forward to Derek and Casey having some sort of moment in the near future, i.e. the next couple of chapters. Also, for those of you who read my story "Tapestry", chapter 1 of the sequel should be up in the next week. And I'll be posting chapter 1 of another Dasey soon too, which should also be up in the next week.

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_Confronting Sam, Comforting Casey_

I took action immediately. "Casey! Get away from him. Take Emily and the kids and get on the speedboat and leave the dock!" Everyone seemed to be too scared not to do what I told them to. Emily grabbed the keys to the speedboat, and they all ran to it. Now I had to deal with Sam.

"You make me sick. You had the most amazing girl in the world and you treated her like shit. Okay, give. What made you do it? Because I really can't understand what goes on in the mind of someone like you."

"Dude, I…I…I really don't know what to say."

"You're damn right you don't know. Because there is no way you can justify what you did. " I yelled at him for probably fifteen minutes, throwing punches the entire time. When I'd grown tired and he lay crumpled on the ground I sat down.

"Why did you come here?"

"I wanted to apologize to Casey. I was wrong."

"Yeah, you _were_ wrong. But what did you hope to get from an apology, huh? Did you really think she'd come running back to you just because you said sorry? You fucking put her in the hospital! She's scared of you, Sam."

"Your right. I was wrong, I know that. That's why I came here. I know I'm wrong, and I want to apologize."

"Oh? Really? Last time you apologized you gave her a piece of jewelry and then two days later you hit her again. That is not an apology. An apology is final! An apology is sincere. You aren't worthy of her forgiveness anyway!"

"I think that's for Casey to decide, not you Derek."

"Casey doesn't need to come near you. Not when you keep hurting her."

I heard the door open. "Speak of the devil. Casey what are you doing here? I told you to stay away; it's not safe!"

"We ran out of gas and our money was here. Besides, I'd at least like to hear what Sam has to say. He better have a damn good reason for coming out here, since I was supposed to be safe here."

"I came to apologize Casey. I was wrong."

"Oh, is that so, Sam? Where have I heard that before? Maybe when I got this," she pointed at the now faded bruise on her cheek, "or this, or this! Well I'm not listening to any more apologies from you. Your apologies hurt, Sam, and I don't want to get hurt anymore. Get out, now!"

Surprisingly, he left. "Casey, do you want to talk?"

"Thank you for defending me, Derek. You didn't have to, you know."

"Oh but I did. You're my stepsister. It's my job to protect you. Plus I love you, or have you forgotten so quickly?"

She smiled. God I love seeing her smile. "Thanks, Derek. I'm sorry I fight with you so much. You're really not so bad. Not anymore, anyway."

So that was it, huh? I'm not so bad. I can handle not so bad. Maybe one day I can get even better than that. I heard a knock at the door.

"So, you ready to go? I'll go get the kids and Emily."

"Okay." Then, as I was turning the doorknob, "Hey, Derek?"

"Yeah?"

"I didn't really believe you last night, when you said you loved me, but I do now. Because even an overprotective stepbrother wouldn't do what you just did to his best friend. So I'm sorry I didn't believe you."

"Hey, its okay. For a long time I didn't give you a reason to believe me. I'm sorry we didn't get along for such a long time."  
"That was as much my fault as yours," she said as she walked toward me.

"Maybe, but I'm still to blame."

She wrapped her arms around me and started to cry. I figured she needed to recover from the whole Sam incident just now, so I just let her cry. I rubbed her back and kissed her on the top of her head and tried to comfort her.

"Shh, don't worry, Case. It's over. Sam won't hurt you again." Boy was I glad Dad was going to be here for the weekend. I needed a break from all this. I hoped he'd bring good news with him.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **Hey guys, sorry for the delay, I was kinda stuck once I got Derek to defend Casey to Sam I wasn't sure where I was going to go with it! And then Saturday, which is a day I usually write a lot, I was at my cousin's kids birthday party. So I finally finished chapter ten and here it is. It's pretty short, but I promise, the next couple of chapters will be longer. I don't expect this story to go for longer than twelve or thirteen chapters. Also, if anyone gets offended by the Texas comment, I'm from there, and I did it to laugh at myself because I _hate_ my accent and speaking mannerisms. So hope that didn't offend anyone. With that, I leave you to the story.

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_A Vacation From The Vacation_

There was a knock on the door, and then someone opened it and Benny from next door shouted to us "Hey, guys, y'all ready to go?" (Oh yeah, did I mention our neighbors were vacationing from Texas? You should hear their accents and ways of speaking. Hilarious!)

"Yeah, give us about ten minutes, okay?"

"Alright, we'll be waiting in the car."

"Hey, Case, you alright? Ready to face the world again?"

"Heh, yeah, I'm good. C'mon lets get the kids and not keep the neighbors waiting."

We all piled into the neighbors two rentals and forty minutes later, while all of us passengers thought we'd be there any minute, we heard Dana, the map reader tell Trisha, our driver, to turn left on county road 436, and then heard Trisha say the nearest county road was numbered 476. At some point, they figured it out, and after another twenty minutes we _finally_ made it into town.

The first thing we did was get lunch. We found this barbecue place, and had a nice lunch, even if the country music playing quietly in the background was kind of giving me a headache. After lunch we decided to split up, because not everyone wanted to see the same thing.

Casey, amazingly enough, decided she wanted to go with me to see the historic houses (yes, I wanted to see the historic houses, just don't tell anyone, you dig?) even though I was the only one interested in going. I made sure Emily wouldn't let Edwin and Lizzie get lost in town, and we started waking towards the section of town with the old houses.

We had a great time. Quite an interesting conversation, too. Casey managed to admit I'd been way too nice for her to treat me like she always did and she said she wouldn't treat me like that anymore. After about five hours of wandering around town, we all piled back into the cars and started for the lake. Casey didn't feel too good, because she took some of her prescription headache pills. She must feel a lot more comfortable around me, because she fell asleep on my shoulder on the way home.

What happened next _had_ to have been the medicine messing with her. I was trying to get her out of the van without waking her up and she stirred, kissed me on the cheek, and said, "I love you, Derek," before falling back asleep in my arms. Why did she have to take those pills? If she hadn't I would _know_ she wasn't delirious when she said that. But I don't know. I guess the jury's still out.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** Okay, what you've been waiting for. How Casey feels.

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_It's Complicated_

I put Casey in her bed and the rest of us waited up for Dad, Nora, and Marti to get there. This vacation was wearing me out. I just wanted to sleep in my own bed again, be in the comfort of my own home. And more than anything, I wanted to know whether Casey meant what she said. Dad called and said the flight was delayed, and to go ahead and go to bed because they wouldn't be here until the middle of the night. The next morning I woke up and Nora and Casey were having cocoa in the living room. I stumbled to the kitchen to get some of the cocoa, wondering if I should confront Casey about yesterday.

"So, you told Casey how you felt about her." It was a statement, not a question. Dad said, making me jump.

"Dad, I didn't realize you were there. Yeah I told her, how did you know?"

"She's talking to Nora about it."

I wish she'd talk to me about it! As if by magic, she walked into the kitchen and asked if I wanted to take the party barge out for a morning boat ride. I agreed. A few minutes later we were making our way out of the cove area our dock was on. "Look Casey, last night you were kind of delirious from your headache pills and you said some stuff. But I don't know if it was the medicine talking or if you really meant it."

"I know what I said, Derek. I just didn't intend to say it."

"Did you mean it?"

"I meant it, sort of, it's just really complicated."

"So uncomplicate it for me, Casey. What do you mean sort of?"

"I don't know. I mean, I love you. But, I don't know how I mean that. Like, love means a _lot_ of stuff Derek. I love how you've been my rock through all of this. I know it's selfish, but Sam is your best friend. Was. Whatever. I love that you cared about me so much that you pretty much bailed on him, even though I feel incredibly guilty about it. Because it proves to me that you really do care. And it's nice to have someone care when you're in my situation. And it's not just how you treat me. I love the way you act all macho and five minutes later you're having a tea party with Marti. I love that smirk that you always give me. I especially love when you let your guard down and genuinely smile. It's just so many indefinable things about you. Little things. Big things. Massive things that make me love you. Most of them I can't really describe. But I feel uncomfortable with loving someone at this stage of my life. Coming out of what I am coming out of? And falling in love? Like I said: COMPLICATED. I'm scared. "

"Scared of _love_?"

"No."

"Scared of _me_? Casey, you have no reason…"

"No, Derek, I'm not scared of you. I'm scared of _hurting_ you. What if the emotional scars of this whole mess heal some day? What if I don't need the strength you're giving me? What if I decide I can live without you? I don't want to hurt you, Derek. I don't think I could live with myself if I did."

Now what was I supposed to say to that? She's right. It is complicated. Because I don't believe she'd ever hurt me. She's just too scared right now to realize it. She'd said it herself; the things she loves about me are indefinable. Now I just had to make her realize that. But how? I was at a loss.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** I am so incredibly sorry that I haven't updated sooner. I just started a new job, my grandparents have needed help, and I have had massive writers block. Please forgive me! There should only be two more chapters. Suggestions are welcome, I just may take them. Thanks you guys!

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_Derek Talks To Paul_

When we came back from our boat ride, Dad had good news. He said once Casey signed the papers he'd drawn up, which included a restraining order and a court order a judge could sign so Sam could get therapy, among other more legal sounding stuff I didn't really understand, we could go home. We weren't expecting to get to go home for at least another couple of weeks. The next morning we headed to the airport, and finally we were home.

I could hardly believe I was searching the family bulletin board for Paul's phone number. Yes, Casey's counselor Paul. I don't know I just needed to talk my feelings out. A couple of hours later I was in his office.

It wasn't so much I thought there was anything he could do _for_ me; I just needed an ear who wasn't all _involved_, and who knew Casey. I told him the whole story, and when I was done talking, I felt a lot better. He'd had some interesting reactions to my spiel. I started from the _very_ beginning, telling him how I'd fallen in love with her. I've never seen a person look so shocked. "What? Why is that so surprising?"

"Well, its just, they way Casey talks about you, you've always seemed to be this completely uncaring person, as if the only thing you are capable of caring about is hockey, who lives to make Casey's life a living hell. When you only get one side of the story for so long you forget there are other sides."

Then I told him about Sam hitting her, and we talked about that for a little while, and he called Casey and insisted she come in so they could talk about it. I was worried she'd be upset I told him, but I figured if she told the rest of us, telling her counselor could be okay. She didn't seem too upset about it, anyway. I was surprised he wanted to know how it had affected me. I wasn't really sure how it affected me. Anyway, when we finished discussing that I told him about the rest. The last thing was about how Casey loved me. Now I thought if he was surprised by my feelings for her, that he'd be floored by her returning them. But he practically finished the sentence for me. "I suspected as much. It's always 'Derek's fault' or 'if it weren't for Derek' or 'if only Derek wasn't so and so'. Years of counseling teenagers has taught me that if a girl appears to hate a guy, chances are the opposite is true. Don't worry, she'll come around. They always do."

I felt a lot better after my meeting with Paul. I just hoped what he said was true. I hoped she did come around.


	13. Chapter 13

_**A/N:** This chapter is pretty long, but I wasn't going to get her to do what she does without a bit of a fight._

_Kristi: I'm so glad to know I'm not the only one who has to literally run to get to class because I'm too wrapped up in a story. LOL._

**A Knight In Shining Armor**

_Home Is Where The Heart Is_

During the next week, Casey avoided everyone and stayed in her room, she especially avoided me. She talked to Lizzie sometimes, but she usually just stayed in there. Which was kind of weird. I mean, while we were at the lake she was going through all of this same shit and was plenty social with us all, and now that we were home she becomes withdrawn.

She went in for some sessions with Paul, and I went back for a couple of visits, too. I'd figured out how what Sam had done was affecting me. Now that Casey was legally safe and I was out of 'protect Casey at all costs' mode, I was having trouble adjusting to not having Sam for a best friend, but as an enemy instead. Paul was helping me work through that.

Today Lizzie asked her why she kept staying holed up in her room. She said she had a lot to think about, and that she didn't want to be around me until she had figured herself out. Or so Lizzie told me.

With the help of Dad and Nora, who seemed to think I would do Casey a world of good, I planned a special evening for us. It's usually not my style to be romantic, but I made an exception. Heck, it's not my style to fall in love, but I did that.

Anyhow, Nora helped me make Casey's favorite meal (the smell of it at least brought her out of her room for a bit), and they took the kids out for the evening. Now, I'm normally not that great at cooking, but after such a long time at the lake with no parents to make meals, I was getting better. So I hope it was at least edible.

When the food was ready and everyone left, I went upstairs and knocked on Casey's bedroom door. I told her dinner was ready and went downstairs. When she came down a few minutes later to see the table set for two and everyone else gone, she didn't look very happy. I hadn't done the whole "white tablecloth and tapered candles and a single rose" bit or anything because Casey hated clichés and frankly, so did I.

But it was still obvious that dinner was just for us, and she was apparently disappointed. Nora had made sure she came out of her room each night for dinner, at least, and each night I'd watch her try to ignore me and prompt Lizzie, Edwin, and Marti into dominating the conversation so we'd all pay attention to them, to aid in her ignoring me.

Now that I had her all to myself, she looked increasingly uncomfortable. The first thing she said to me was "When are the others going to get back?" and I must say, her reaction was disappointing me.

"Casey, I haven't forgotten what you said on the boat. I know your ignoring me has something to do with it. Why can't you just relax around me?"

"Because, Derek. I'm trying to come to terms with some stuff, and I don't want you pressing me until I've figured it out."

"So that's just how it's going to be huh? You're going to ignore me forever? Edwin and Lizzie will get a laugh out of it. You going out of your way to avoid me considering we live in the same house. But whatever; I didn't go to all this trouble for nothing. I'll just call Emily and you two can eat it. I'll just catch a movie. Not that there's anything I want to see, or anything."

"Derek, wait. You seem hurt."

"I _am_ hurt!"

"I'm sorry. I don't want to hurt you. To be honest, I've been trying to protect myself."

"Protect yourself? From?"

"I don't have such a good track record with boys. Sam hit me, my boyfriend from where we used to live cheated on me. I'm tired of getting hurt. And now Derek Venturi, who wouldn't know a real emotion if it slapped him in the face, tells me he loves me. I'm avoiding you because I am _not_ getting hurt again. I'm just not going to let it happen."

"You're wrong Casey. I'm sorry you haven't had the best experience with guys, I truly am. But if you think I wasn't sincere you have another think coming."

"I know you _think_ you love me. But Derek, you're…you're…you're YOU! I've never even seen you go out with the same girl twice."

"No, Casey, I don't _think_ it. I _know _it. What is making it so hard for you to accept that?"

"I don't want to get hurt again. Guys hurt you."

I grabbed her by the shoulders and then turned her face so she was looking directly at me. "Okay, I'll give you that. Guys hurt you. _Some_ guys. I know the reputation that precedes me might make me seem like one of those guys. But I'm _not_."

I sighed, sitting down resignedly. "I have spent the last month doing everything in my power to _keep_ you from getting hurt any more than you already were. I don't know what else I can say. If you don't believe me then you don't. But let me ask you this. When do I put someone else's needs above mine? Until now? Never." I stopped. I couldn't think of anything else to say. It was her cue now. Would she take it? Apparently, she would.

"You're right. You're right about it all. I was just so scared. I'm sorry. I love you, Derek."

Finally she had said it. Without 'complications', or excuses. And then she pulled me out of my chair and kissed me.


End file.
